The Foundation Trilogy concists of:
1. Foundations
2. Foundation and Empire
3. Second Foundation
The Foundation Trilogy is an epic science fiction series written over a span of forty-four years by Isaac Asimov. It consists of seven volumes that are closely linked to each other, although they can be read separately. The series is highly acclaimed, winning the one-time Hugo Award for "Best All-Time Series" in 1966.
The premise of the series is that mathematician Hari Seldon spent his life developing a branch of mathematics known as psychohistory, a concept devised by Asimov and his editor John W. Campbell. Using the law of mass action, it can predict the future, but only on a large scale; it is error-prone for anything smaller than a planet or an empire. It works on the principle that the behavior of a mass of people is predictable if the quantity of this mass is very large (equal to the population of the galaxy). The larger the mass, the more predictable is the future. Using these techniques, Seldon foresees the fall of the Galactic Empire, which encompasses the entire Milky Way, and a dark age lasting thirty thousand years before a second great empire arises. To shorten the period of barbarism, he creates two Foundations, small, secluded havens of art, science, and other advanced knowledge, on opposite ends of the galaxy.
The focus of the trilogy is on the Foundation of the planet Terminus. The people living there are working on an all-encompassing Encyclopedia, and are unaware of Seldon's real intentions (for if they were, the variables would become too uncontrolled). The Encyclopedia serves to preserve knowledge of the physical sciences after the collapse. The Foundation's location is chosen so that it acts as the focal point for the next empire in another thousand years (rather than the projected thirty thousand).

Audio has 8 parts


This audio is part of the collection: Old Time Radio
It also belongs to collection: Radio Programs

Artist/Composer: Isaac Asimov
Keywords: Isaac Asimov; Foundation; Foundation Trilogy; Sci Fi; Science Fiction; psychohistory

Creative Commons license: Public Domain

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Reviewer: alln4tural - - April 9, 2013
Subject: BBC Radiophonic Workshop


i thoroughly enjoyed listening to this, not least for the early synthesizer sounds created by the BBC Radiophonic Workshop https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BBC_Radiophonic_Workshop

there was a time i would have considered them a bit cheezy, but i've come to appreciate the pioneering aspects more. the music here is really quite experimental, in the best possible sense.

The series was first broadcast in 1973, btw, as far as i can tell. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foundation_series#Radio_adaptation

Reviewer: toby jug - - August 24, 2012
Subject: BBC English...
The English language as spoken in this BBC production, produced for a British audience is seen as a negative ...I must start complaining that American radio shows are all in American accents........

Reviewer: Sal Migondis - - August 24, 2012
Subject: BBC English..!
.. and languid acting do not work for me. Pity, since the production.. sound quality of the recording.. adaptation.. etc. are otherwise commendable.

Reviewer: Ed 999 - - January 2, 2010
Subject: Impressive adaptation
The three novels which make up the original Foundation trilogy were written as a magazine serial between 1940 and 1950, for a science fiction magazine edited by the legendary John W Campbell. They were thus composed as a series of short stories, giving them a number of advantages over the later books by which Asimov added to the story forty years afterwards.

The short story format of the initial books, which are the ones adapted for this dramatisation, mean the tale continually builds toward a dramatic climax, for several magazine serials were included in each book. Thus the story reaches a frequent dramatic cliffhanger, not merely at the end of each novel: a significant advantage when it came to adapting the trilogy in eight parts for broadcasting.

The linking "story arch" in the trilogy was guided by John W Campbell, the legendary S-F editor and publisher, and himself a celebrated author. Campbell's powerful influence, coupled with the limited page space available in the magazine format, forced a discipline upon Asimov that his later books lack; and in literary terms this was a very significant benefit.

The production values of the BBC's radio adaptation are impressive. The production also benefits greatly from having eight hours of air time, enabling most of the key plot elements to be included. Even so, a good deal of background detail does have to be omitted. Some of that detail is noteable in its absence, leaving the characters struggling a little for motivation.

One compelling theme of the trilogy is missing: namely the constant awareness the central characters have of the dead hand of Seldon, and of events running out of their control. And the guiding principle of the trilogy, that each situation is going to culminate in a 'Seldon Crisis', tends not to be emphasised enough.

Perhaps no adaptation can be wholly satisfactory to someone familiar with the books upon which it's based, if those books have genuine literary merit, which this trilogy surely does. Yet someone who has not read them will probably notice nothing amiss. These matters notwithstanding, this is surely one of the best of adaptations.

Reviewer: scottmi - - January 14, 2009
Subject: good recording
it's always a delight to find a clear and easy to understand recording. A good, very complete, version of this classic story. The sound effects are vintage BBC sound labs.. a charming "dating" of the work.

Reviewer: bucketoclams - - October 5, 2008
Subject: Lovely Radio Show
I have to admit to a bias. I've enjoyed Asimov's works since I was a kid, and it was his works that really got me started in science fiction.

The quality of the recording is excellent, and sounds just as if you were listening to it on an old radio in the parlor. This recording seems to have been taken from one of the earlier broadcasts (See the wikipedia article here:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Foundation_Trilogy_(BBC_Radio) for information).

If, like me, you enjoy listening to a good story while doing other things, pick this one up.